Alicia C. Staley's Page

I'm an engineer by education, so sometimes I think it's easier to explain my cancer experience by the numbers:

I've had Hodgkin's disease once, Breast Cancer twice. I was a 20 year old college sophomore, fighting my way through cancer for the 1st time. To diagnose the Hodgkin's, I had every major organ in my abdominal region biopsied, a section of my hip removed, my spleen removed, and for good measure, I let the doctors take out my appendix too. To treat the Hodgkin’s, I had 18 weeks of radiation and 9 rounds of chemo therapy. My chemo regime had 4 drugs. I still have 21 little blue radiation tattoos used to mark the radiation field on my body. I lost all my hair and lost a ton of weight. It took close to 3 years to battle through the Hodgkin’s.

At the age of 33, I was diagnosed with breast cancer for the first time. I had one lumpectomy and 5 intense days of Mammosite Radiation. For two years, I dealt with horrific side effects from “the anticancer drug” Tamoxifen – dry eyes, night sweats, bone pain, weight gain, migraines, insomnia, fevers… Sometimes, the cure is worse than the disease. In November 2007, I was diagnosed with breast cancer for a second time and I opted for major surgery - a double mastectomy. I had my thyroid removed during that surgery too. In total, I've had 3 separate courses of radiation, 1 course of chemo, 8 major surgeries, and 1 bone marrow biopsy. Whew…

I'm walking proof that super glue and duct tape works wonders.
But in case you want to know... I can still hit a golf ball 250 yards on a good day... bad day, maybe 235.